updated 12:04 pm EDT, Thu March 28, 2013

Company tries to win back pro video editors

Apple is today launching a new marketing campaign aimed at winning editors over to Final Cut Pro X, says the LA Times. The campaign focuses on users praising features and differences in the video editing suite. Apple's efforts are reportedly being timed to coincide with the National Association of Broadcasters expo, which begins April 6th in Las Vegas.

The marketing will involve posting three new stories on its website, including one about Hong Kong film director Tsui Hark. Also highlighted will be telenovela studio TV Azteca, and Julian Liurette, an editor at Canada's leading The Globe and Mail newspaper.

Final Cut Pro X was originally released in 2011, but was immediately met with sharp criticism by video editors, who complained that the software was actually missing features that had been in previous versions of Final Cut. Some of those components have been restored, but Apple is still dealing with the fallout of its original design decisions. A number of editors have either stuck with the previous version of Final Cut Pro or migrated to competing editing suites, such as Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer.

FCPX is finished!

Sorry, Apple. This is the worst update (mistake) you ever made. FCPX is 100% iMovie Pro. Why, Apple? I purchased the software last year and even today I can't stand it. I had already migrated my FCP7 files to Adobe Premiere Pro which is much easier to learn and pickup because it's similar to FCP7. FCPX is built by some aliens out of space. What the heck were they thinking???? I don't get it. I am not very fond of iMovie 9's redesigned interface (vs. iMovie 6) but it's still a quick fix for home movie. But to use that as foundation for FCPX is totally mess up from the Apple team. I bet there will be more people crowding at Avid and Adobe boots than Apple for this video editing expo.

Still There

I'm still on the previous version of FCP, and will most likely stay there as it has ALL the tools that I need, and a familiar interface that, for me, is much better than the mess that is FCPX. When you have a workflow that works, and an interface that everyone knows how to use, you don't go putting it into a blender! Remember when Microsoft did that with Office? I still can't find some of the menu commands and processes without resorting to the online help.

FCPX is really pretty good

FCPX is getting there. The multi cam, syncing functions and second monitor have helped restore much of the old FCP7 functionality. The speed with which you can edit is impressive once you get used to the interface. Yes, it's different than other linear editors, but once you get the hang of it it's way faster to assemble with. The file management, when you learn how to use it, is amazing in my opinion. It is very flexible in the way you can manage assets using as little data as you need to really piling on the assets. We never lose resources now when moving portable drives from one machine to another. Apple's problem now is that they need to dig in their heals and get out there and teach the new software to editors. What Apple needs to do is to pick a few of the important trade shows and get out there, one-on-one, with editors and show them what can really be done with it. CAN YOU SAY NAB!! Otherwise, up and coming editors will never get the chance to use FCPX because of comments such as the above (sorry if this is offensive) from the old dogs that can't learn the new tricks.

For those who loves FCPX...

good luck in finding jobs that supports it plus universities are dropping FCP classes left and right. If there are no old dogs teaching it, there won't be any FCPX in the future. Perhaps it will exist as hobbyist tool along with AppleTV in the future.

From the inside

coffeetime, it would lend some credibility to your assertion if you gave some examples, but since that is not actually happening, I guess that would impossible. I am a professional soundtrack composer, and 99.999% of the major studios I work with that had been on FCP are still on it! Yes, they were pist about the new version initially, but with the updates, they are all still on board. Apple IS releasing an updated version of FCP, though I don't have a date for this. Hang in there.

A new mac pro might help

If Apple was serious about reentering the FCP market- they should introduce a new Mac Pro- still no Thunderbolt- really?
I just got a lecture from a friend about how they left FCP for Premier- and he was ranting and raving about the lack of rendering during an edit- and that he didn't have to conform or transcode anything.
This was a serious Avid shop- who went kicking and screaming to FCP- but, gave up about 9 months ago.
So, just yesterday, we started to work with Premier- and so far, we can't see a reason not to continue.
We couldn't switch to FCPX on our 2009 Mac Pro- and an iMac wasn't it- and seriously, FCP7 is looking dated... and we already had Premier.
Also - the last 10x we tried to use Compressor- it sucked. The Adobe Media Encoder rocked-
sorry Apple. Time to make a serious effort.
Like a $1500 pro machine with maybe 2 slots, thunderbolt and a few full size drive bays.

Well, so much for Apple's dominance in the editing arena. We all know that the Pro App department
was a loss leader for Apple even at the price point they were set at. It's a small market guys and yes
anyone who says that FCP-X is not iMovie Deluxe is just arguing prosumer points. Professional editors
are running away from FCP like a bad Zombie flick and the reason is this: they endured over 6 months of bullshit from Apple trying to foist a dry turd in place of the diamond that FCP 7.03 was. The replacement was bad, real bad and the few who said "we love it" just cannot afford or work in Avid or Premiere.
It was a gargantuan and colossal blunder, not unlike prematurely migrating iOS into the OSX environment.
Now, many say that it is ready…FCP-X is ready. Sad to say many people who have been working in FCP 7
waiting for the moment when X becomes what it should be are moving on. I see the marketing ploy as just one more ill-conceived and poorly timed blunder. Not many can forget the turnout where Apple dumped us off at after many years of patronage.

The people who dislike the new Final Cut do so for one of three reasons:
A) it seriously doesn't fit their needs,
B) they're unhappy with Apple's botched transition and have lost trust, or
C) they're just too inflexible to see how effective the new approach is.
They are just very vocal about it.

A) is mostly changing, though some things like tape support are simply not going to happen. The discontinuation of FC Server is also a big issue, and it ties into B), which there is no real remedy for. I use another of Apple's "pro" tools, and while the reduction in price from 5000€ (Logic Platinum including all plug-ins) to 180€ is obviously welcome, I'm watching with some concern how they're treating the market. C)...nothing to say.

It reminds me of the OS X transition: remember thalo and the MacFixit wars? Those were supposedly "professional" "designers" who strangely could spend entire days online to rant about how the happy horseshit gumdrops and lickable interface meant that Apple didn't give a shit about supposed pro users, and how they were all going to jump ship because they were unable to work due to all the distraction...